Chris Stapleton Is Best Wedding Gift Ever for Surprised Bride

Bride Stephanie Braun and her now-husband Officer Ryan Braun were devastated when they realized their favorite artist, Chris Stapleton, was playing in their city the same night of their wedding. They already chosen "Tennessee Whiskey" as their first dance song and figured that would have to do, but their friends had other plans.

One of Braun's mother’s friends contacted the local radio station B-105, who pulled some strings to create the perfect wedding gift: Stapleton himself. After the first dance at their reception, the couple were essentially kidnapped and taken next door to the backstage area at Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, where Stapleton was playing.

While her husband seemed to be in on the plan, Stephanie was oblivious to what was happening. She says she was told she was going to be singing and joked that she quickly wanted to determine where the nearest exit was.

"I was trying to figure out what was going on and I was clueless,” she remembers. "We walked in and I looked over and I saw this burly tall grisly man and I looked a little closer and I was like ‘Oh my goodness, that's Chris Stapleton! I almost fainted."

As if his presence weren’t enough, Stapleton topped it off with a personalized signed guitar as a wedding present for the couple. After a few photos, the couple was rushed back to their reception, but not without a memory that will certainly last a lifetime.

Stapleton is on the road all over with his Traveller Tour, including one unique date this summer in which he opened for Guns N’ Roses on their reunion tour. He played several festivals and award shows as well in recent months, including Bonnaroo and CMA Fest. He’s slated to play Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater this fall.